Sun Rise
by DeanGirl2Y5
Summary: The moment Ezekiel possesses Sam in the hospital, Aline comes into her inheritance as the daughter of Japan's sun goddess. Now, Aline, along with Sam (the Wandering Artist, how ironic) and Dean (the half-baked prophet, much to his brother's amusement) must repeat Amaterasu's (and Aline's) history and face the consequences of tipping the balance between good and evil. Cover (c) me
1. The Story Begins

_Welcome to my new SPN/__Ōkami crossover! This is going to have spoilers for the game, therefore, **don't read this fic if you plan on playing **_**_Ōkami. _**_I mean _major _major spoilers. Dialogue will be taken directly from the game because I wasn't sure how else to do this. I may be creative with fics, but I'm not _that _creative. This is demigod!AU, meaning my SPN character, Aline, is a demigod, instead of a half-demon like she is in the regular series (well, former demon, but you get the point). The characters of SPN will be taking on the roles of one or two characters in the game. I only have ideas for five SPN characters and six ___Ōkami characters. If you have any ideas for who should be what character, message me either on here, AO3, Wattpad, or Quotev (I also have this fic up on those websites under the same name). Ideas are very much appreciated. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did when I wrote this._ _

_Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize except for Aline and the plot._

_This whole fic will take place in season 9._

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><p><em>Long, long ago, a tiny hamlet known as Kamiki lay nestled in a grove of proud and beautiful cherry blossoms. Each and every tree around the quiet burg was honored as a god. However, the village was not without its dark secrets.<em>

_To satiate the appetite of Orochi, a fearsome cave-dwelling beast, a young maiden was offered as a sacrifice at the annual festival. With a body like a mountain and 8 heads mounted on necks the size of tree trunks, its blood-red eyes alone were said to curse anyone who gazed into them. No one dared disobey the horrific beast._

_When the night of the sacrifice drew near, a mysterious white wolf appeared outside the village. This wolf, its coat as brilliant as snow, was dubbed Shiranui. The wolf kept a watchful eye on anyone who ventured outside the village, and made a habit of patrolling the streets at night. People assumed the wolf to be a familiar of Orochi._

_One villager took it upon himself to face the fearsome Shiranui. The warrior Nagi attempted many times to challenge the wolf. But his attempts were thwarted by Shiranui's swift movements._

_Before long, the night of the accursed festival had arrived. A white plumed arrow heralded the coming sacrifice. Piercing the sky, the arrow sunk its shaft squarely into the home of Nami, the village's most beautiful maiden. Nagi, harboring a secret love for Nami, was enraged by this sign. Determined to put an end to Orochi once and for all, Nagi traveled to the beast's cave in place of his beloved._

_The Moon Cave, a place as dark as evil itself, served as Orochi's home. As Nagi stood before the entrance, a beast appeared, eyes glowing crimson upon 8 thrashing necks. Orochi stood tall before him, anxious for another sacrifice. Nagi leapt with incredible grace, swinging his blade valiantly. On and on he sliced, well into the moonless night..._

_But Orochi's hide was like steel. The blade left nary a scratch._

_At long last, Nagi, his energy spent from the intense battle, dropped to his knees, fatigued and gasping for breath. He knew he was staring death in the face. It was then that the wolf appeared. As if to protect Nagi, it stood its ground before Orochi. In the darkness of the cave, the wolf's coat shone brilliantly. _

_Alas, it was Shiranui, the wolf that dwelled outside the village. Baring its fearsome claws, Shiranui leapt toward Orochi. Orochi reared its terrifying heads, readying its fangs for battle. The two beasts struggled wildly, thrashing in the darkness._

_Mysterious and terrifying,the spectacle continued. Shiranui summoned gusts of divine wind to counter Orochi's flames._

_As Ororochi closed in on Shiranui, sharpened claws glistening, a gigantic tree suddenly sprouted forth, shielding the wolf. Shiranui fought gallantly to gain the upper hand. However, Orochi, protected by a mystical power, was not easily bested. Shiranui, covered in gashes, majestic coat died crimson, stood exhausted before the mighty Orochi._

_Orochi saw a chance to strike what would be the final blow. But Shiranui refused to give in. With its last ounce of strength, the majestic wolf gazed heavenward and unleashed a mighty howl. Suddenly, the black clouds overhead dissipated. The light from above glinted off Nagi's sword as a beacon of hope._

_Guided by his sword, Nagi,who had been taking shelter in the shadows, stood proudly to face his adversary. Channeling all his strength into his scarred and battered arms, he leapt ferociously toward Orochi, his sword poised high. The golden sword danced in his hands like a puppet on a string. One by one, Orochi's fearsome heads separated from their owner._

_Orochi's broken body collapsed in a lake of its own blood. In that instant, the curse that plagued the villagers was lifted. As the battle subsided, the sun shone once again in the sky. Shiranui had succumbed to Orochi's poison and struggled to breathe. Nagi scooped the beast into his arms and returned to Kamiki._

_When they reached the village, Shiranui was no longer moving. The village elder gently stroked the wolf's head. In response, Shiranui let out a hoarse and pitiful bark..._

_Then closed its eyes and drifted off as if into slumber._

_Peace had at last returned to Kamiki Village. In honor of Shiranui's heroic exploits, the villagers erected a shrine and placed a statue of the white wolf within it._

_Nagi's sword was christened "Tsukuyomi" and placed inside the Moon Cave. The villagers all looked forward to an age of endless peace..._

She knew it wasn't the end of the story, but Mom always ended it with, "And they all lived happily ever after."

It was a story she knew all too well because Mom always told it to her at bedtime. It was her favorite story and one she'd always ask for every night. There were times when she'd want to re-enact the story with a couple of her friends, and they'd show it off in front of their parents. At first, she believed it was completely make-believe, but it turned out to be part of her history. She didn't even realize that she'd be living out the continuation of that story.

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><p><em><strong>Next time on <span>Sun Rise<span>:  
><strong>_

"_O, he who seeks power... He who has broken my bonds... Speak the words, **'I wish darkness unto the world.' **Utter that prayer unto me, and unleash my power."_


	2. I Had To

Sam and Dean had been surprised about the fact that Aline could change into a wolf. A pure white wolf like Shiranui, no less. They thought she was a skin changer, but they threw the idea out once she passed the test. Then there was the whole matter of the mark on the underside of her left wrist. It was the kanji for daughter, she'd easily translated before they could even look up the meaning. They did anyway.

She was right, of course.

Occasionally, she'd turn into a wolf and gank a monster like that. Hell, she'd been doing that before the boys found out. The three of them became a tight-knit family (though Aline's feelings for Dean were more than one should feel for a sibling) and went through everything together since they met in St. Louis: John dying, Dean going to Hell, the apocalypse, soulless Sam, the leviathans, Bobby dying, Dean and Cas going to Purgatory, the trials, and angels falling.

That gave the boys time to get used to how she looked and acted when she felt a certain way.

Sad and depressed meant she didn't switch back to her human form for who knew how long and late night howls at the moon. If she couldn't be in her wolf form, they'd be able to see her wolf ears and tail, and her eyes would be her wolf eyes.

Angry meant rabid wolf. Sam always swore he saw her eyes flick red and shadows of nine tails appear on the floor and walls behind her. That was a frightening sight to see.

Happy meant human Aline with a bright smile on her face, one that even made the boys smile.

Now, Sam was lying unconscious in the hospital. Reports of the "meteor shower" (they both knew it was angels falling from heaven) played on the news. Aline and Dean were sitting next to him, one of Sam's hands was in two of Aline's and her ears were drooping in sadness. The doctors weren't sure whether he was going to wake up again. They even said it would be a miracle if he did wake up.

Her heart felt like it was aching more than before. There was no way she'd let him die like this. She needed him to live. Why? She couldn't really explain it besides the fact that he's her best friend and the brother she never had. There was something else, but she couldn't put it to words.

Aline clenched her jaw and stood up, knowing what she had to do. She let go of Sam's hand, but Dean put his own hand on her arm, making her heart speed up.

"Don't," he said weakly. "I can't lose you, too."

"I'm not gonna do that. What I'm gonna do is wake him up. For both of us," she replied, kissing the top of his head. "You won't lose me, Dean. I promise. Just stay by him."

He slowly and gently let go of her arm, and she walked out of the room, following the signs to the chapel. There were two other people praying, probably for sick friends, loved ones, or themselves. She chose the pew closest to the front, sat down, clasped her hands together, and did the one thing she could think of.

"Cas," she began, "we need you, buddy. Sammy's hurt. Real bad from the trials. Doctors are saying he won't wake up. Me and Dean are both wrecks from this. Please just...come fix Sam. Please." She glanced around, looking for any sign of her angelic best friend.

Nothing. Not even a flutter of angel wings.

She sighed and ran her fingers over her hair, her ears tilting farther back on her head as she leaned back for a few minutes. Fixing herself on the uncomfortable pew and getting back into the position she was in before, Aline leaned on her elbows and said in a low tone, "This goes out to any angel that can hear me. My name's Aline Peverell, and I need your help."

*~*~*~*SPN*~*~*~*

Aline, along with Dean, quickly crossed out all the sigils she had drawn on the walls, all while Ezekiel watched from his spot beside Sam. Ezekiel was the angel that helped her take down the ones that wanted to know where Cas was. Once the two of them were finished, Zeke explained the situation and let them see it for themselves.

Sam was talking with Death, and he was about to say yes to dying.

Aline's heart clenched and tears built up in her eyes, which she quickly wiped away.

"Just do what you gotta do, Zeke. Please," Dean said as desperation sank in Aline's body and mind at the thought of losing her best friend.

The scene before her eyes flickered between a man in the shadows walking up to something that looked like a well with a bell attached to where the rope and bucket would be with a blue and gold sword (it had a crescent moon on the handle) stuck right in the well and Zeke saving Sam. Zeke and Sam disappeared, and the man, the well, the sword, and the red sky became solid.

"_Is this the legendary sword?" _the man asked. _"Is this Tsukuyomi, the sword that banished the dreaded Orochi?"_

The questions gave Aline chills. There was no way this was real. A dozen possibilities bounced around in her head: it might be a hallucination from how little she had eaten since she and Dean took Sam to the hospital or something else entirely.

The man shook his head. _"No... it couldn't be. It's just a legend... Nothing but a fairy tale!" _He pulled the sword out, and eight pairs of crimson eyes glowed in the darkness, chilling Aline to the bone. The man dropped the sword, his body shaking in fear as Orochi awakened _(This isn't really happening. It's just a story. Nothing but a story.)_. He tried to run away, but he tripped and fell in one of the circular holes with a kanji symbol in it, the word "fire" popping up in Aline's head.

One of Orochi's heads moved down to the man's level to lock eyes with him. _"O, he who seeks power... He who has broken my bonds... Speak the words, __**'I wish darkness unto the world.' **__Utter that prayer unto me, and unleash my power," _he said. His voice was deep, rough, and dark, making her think of Alastair.

Aline grabbed onto Dean's hand without a second thought, fear seeping into her bones. _Whoever you are, _she thought to the man,_ don't say that. Please don't._

All eight heads were looking at him, waiting for him to say the prayer. When he did not say it, the head that spoke lifted up and let out a roar. After this roar, the man took off running down the stairs and back to where he came from, screaming. Aline followed, but she bumped into the door, the action reminding her of where she actually was.

The vision wouldn't let go that easily, though, for the head released another vicious roar, making her fall down on all fours, panting heavily. She heard someone call her name as quick flashes of trees being uprooted and burning away and the world becoming a cursed zone.

The last thing she heard before everything went black was Dean calling her name.


	3. Origin of All That is Good

Dean had placed her on her bed in the bunker and pulled up a chair to sit beside her. It looked like she was asleep, but she wasn't even breathing.

What did she see back there?

Whatever it was had scared her so much that she passed out. She had been trying to drag him out of the room and away from Sam and Zeke, but she had bumped into the door. He remembered watching her fall to her hands and knees as she panted heavily. He had called out her name and her eyes were on his, but she didn't see him. Her eyes had flitted left and right, widening with fear before she collapsed into his arms.

Dean was drawn out of the memory and his thoughts when her hand was replaced by a white paw. He looked up at her and saw that she had shifted to her wolf form. She was standing up on her feet in such a way that made him think of her fighting stance, but she looked like she was made of stone.

_But...she was normal a few minutes ago, _Dean thought, feeling confused.

He glanced around her room and saw it shift to outside. Rocks and stones were flying all around, and the sky was dark red. A giant rock flew towards her. He jumped in front of her to protect her without a second thought, but the motion was unnecessary as a woman broke the rock with her hands after jumping in front of Aline and him. The woman was fairly tall and accompanied by a purple aura, wearing a pink kimono that revealed her back and rear. There was a peach pattern where her rear was.

"_How troublesome!" _she exclaimed. _"This is just like the ancient prophecy of doom."_

She turned around to look at Aline as Dean moved out of the way, unsure of whether the woman would actually be able to see him or not. That was when he saw her face. Her long black was tied at the back with two strands parting to the sides. His eyes were drawn to the top of her chest (which looked like a peach as well) before he quickly looked into her eyes. She looked about as old as he was, but her eyes revealed she had lived much longer than that.

"_What has transpired to bring about such calamity? We must act quickly! There is no time to lose! My power has diminished over the years I've spent protecting this area. I don't have much time left in this world."_

He watched as the woman drew a circle which turned into a stone weapon surrounded by stone flames.

"_Amaterasu, now is the time," _the woman continued. _"We have never needed your power more. Shine your divine light on this broken and polluted world. Let your heavenly rays become or hope as you guide us all!" _She threw it up into the air.

It flew around like a frisbee for a few minutes before landing on Aline's back, bringing her back to life from the weapon out. Dean's eyes widened in shock.

She no longer looked like a pure white wolf. There were red markings all over her body and whirling tendrils on her fore and hind legs. The fire from her weapon flew up, and she yawned, bright sunlight appearing behind her. She fixed herself so she was standing right and shook out her body like she was trying to wake herself up. White sparkles flew out from the action. She hopped down from the pedestal before finally locking her eyes on Dean's.

He hesitantly walked over to her and began petting her. She nuzzled into his hand (even licking it once) as the woman in front of her resumed speaking.

"_Ah! Such divine white light! Such beauty and grace! The only one capable of such a wondrous spectacle is none other than our mother and the origin of all that is, Amaterasu!"_

He felt Aline stiffen beside him and watched her as she looked down at her body, her jaw dropping in shock.

"**What the fuck?" **he heard her bark, her shock leaking into her tone. **"There's no way this is actually happening."**

"Apparently it is, sweetheart," Dean replied.

Her eyes shot up to meet his again. **"Wait...you can understand what I'm saying now?"**

"I've always been able to. Sammy has, too."

"**Son of a bitch."**

"Anyway, who's this?"

"**I'll tell you later."**

"_How delightful to see that the savior whose brave sacrifice sealed away the evil demon so many years ago has not changed one bit," _the woman stated with a smile. _"Seeing you emerge after so many years spent as a statue brings happiness to my heart!" _She sniffed.

Aline yawned and laid down on the ground. Dean sat down next to her, softly stroking her head.

The woman was silent for a few minutes, watching Aline before she spoke again. _"Amaterasu... Gaze above you and take in the condition of the sky. Since your untimely departure from our midst, the world has succumbed to devious and vicious beasts."_

He saw her glance around before laying her head back down, her eyes revealing the fact she still didn't believe that this was really happening.

"_They have ravaged our fine and bountiful country of Nippon... But never have the circumstances been worse than they are at this very moment. Please use your powers to banish the darkness and punish those who would do us harm."_

Just then, the woman's breasts started jiggling, catching Dean's attention once again.

The woman looked down at them as well, a confused expression on her face. _"Hmm?" _They jiggled again. _"Eh? What is this?" _The whole top half of her body started jiggling as well. _"Has something stolen its way into my robe?" _She then started laughing like she was being tickled (it sounded creepy in his opinion) and tossed her head back until a figure no bigger than a bug jumped out of her chest and landed on the ground on it's back. _"Phew! What on earth?" _She looked down at the figure laying on the ground in between her and Aline. _"You again?"_

The tiny figure rolled on the ground for a few minutes before standing up.

"_Ow ow ow ow ow! Are you nuts? Boy, for a little thing, you sure make a big fuss!"_ a tiny male voice said, making Aline jump up and start growling at it. _"I was just tryin' to make the conversation a bit more interesting, that's all."_

The voice suspiciously sounded like Sam's, but, before he could confirm that, the woman spoke again.

"_Were you napping in my clothes again, bug?" _she asked with a smile.

"_Bug?" _the figure said in disbelief. _"I told a thousand times not to call me that! I'm a wandering artist. The name's Issun! I'll show you just how great I am and it won't be long till you're bowing before my great brush!" _He pulled a scroll out of his pocket and threw it towards Aline.

It landed open on her face, but she shook it off, and it landed on the ground. Dean saw a beautiful Japanese-style portrait of the woman in front of them. He found himself thinking that there was no way this little bug was his brother. Sam couldn't draw _that _well.

"_Well,whaddya think? Even cuter than the real thing, no?"_

Aline shook her head. **"Nah. Not really. Picture's beautiful, though," **she barked.

Issun bounced over to Aline before landing on her snout, letting Dean have a closer look at him. Much to both his and Aline's shock, it was a miniature version of Sam with a beetle's shell for a hat and a small green cape. Dean held back a snicker at the sight of his moose of a brother now no bigger than a bug, but he saw a grin on Aline's own face.

"_What's with you, furball? You look kinda down in the dumps. Actually... You look kinda familiar... Got it! You look just like that statue of Shiranui!"_

Aline took him in her mouth, and Dean couldn't hold his laughter back any longer. He saw signs of amusement and satisfaction in Aline's eyes before her head perked up and she spat the younger Winchester out. He laughed harder at the sight of his brother covered in wolf slobber.

Sam was hopping mad, the expression no more fitting than it was right now. _"Whoa! Whaddya think you're doin'! Are you crazy?"_

Aline grinned again, not saying a word.

"_A handsome guy like me should never be covered in wolf slobber! You'll regret messin' with the great Issun!" _He stopped hopping, and Dean heard the sound of a small sword being pulled out of its scabbard. _"Don't make me use my prized sword, Denkomaru, against you!"_

Just then, they all heard a huge roar. Dean noticed Aline cringe at the sound.

"What was that?" he asked, looking around.

"**Beats me," **she lied.

Before he could call her out on the lie, Sam spoke again.

"_Wh-Wh-What's that growling sound?" _he asked from his perch on Aline's snout. _"__And why's it so dark, anyway?"_

"_O, great god Amaterasu..." _the woman stated as a bright pink aura surrounded her. _"__I've used all the power I have to protect Kamiki Village. The village lives on. Their spirits lie encased in my fruit. Cut it free and the village will be reborn!"_

Just then, Dean heard the sound of something growing just behind him. He turned and saw a great tree standing right behind the pedestal Aline had been standing on minutes earlier. There weren't any leaves or flowers on it, but there was a giant peach hanging from one of the branches. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped at the sight.

"_I trust in you. I know that you will lead us down the right path. Only your awesome power can restore life to the world."_

He looked back at Aline and Sam, seeing that they both were looking at the tree as well.

"_The tree's returned to normal, huh?" _Sam pointed out. _"__That Sakuya girl sure said some weird stuff. The villagers' spirits are being kept inside the fruit... There's the fruit. That girl said that if you cut it down, the village will be restored. But it's awfully high up there. If you don't use some kind of special power, there's no way you're gonna reach it. This darkness is really gettin' to me, too. A lot can happen while you're taking a nap."_

Once Dean looked down, he saw a bright light coming from the gap between the roots of the tree and the ground.

"What the hell's that?" he asked.

"It's a portal," Aline responded, making Dean look back at her when he realized she wasn't barking anymore.

His jaw dropped at her new appearance.

Her long brown hair was tied in a ponytail on the left side of her head (a style he had never seen her use in all the time he'd known her). She was wearing a revealing form-fitting dress of silver, dark green, and gold consisting of a white top, dark green sections on the front and back connecting the top to the skirt over black shorts, cut-out sides at the waist, crisscrossing dark green straps on the sides of her torso, and two straps that went over her shoulders into a cross-back shape. On the lower half of her body, she wore a pair of black thigh-high leggings and silver ankle boots. A dark green choker was around her neck, while short dark green sleeves under gray gloves that have gold ornaments were on her arms, along with one gold armband on each. One of the armbands was in the shape of a wolf. The weapon she received from Sakuya was floating on her back. Those red markings that were on her body as a wolf were in the same places on her human form. The one thing that remained the same, however, were her ears and tail, except the tip of her tail was black as if it was dipped in a bottle of ink.

She looked beautiful. Not that she wasn't beautiful before, but the outfit just added to her beauty in his mind.

Sam was now standing on her shoulder instead of on her face.

She looked over at Dean and cocked her head to the side. "What? Do I have something on my face?" she asked.

Sam decided to respond for him. "Nah. You just look different. The good kind."

She pulled a mirror out of her pocket, and her eyes widened in shock. "Holy shit. I look just like Serah."

Dean became confused. "Who?"

Aline put the mirror away and looked at him. "Serah Farron. Final Fantasy XIII and XIII-2. I'll show you guys a picture of her later. Right now, we've got work to do."

He found himself wondering whether she'd look like that even if they got out of this place, wherever this place was.


	4. Celestial What-Now?

Aline still couldn't believe this was happening as the three hunters (more like her and Dean; Sam was just along for the ride) walked through the portal underneath Konohana, ending up in the cave of Nagi.

"_Where are we?" _Sam asked. _"It got awfully quiet all of a sudden. I don't remember any place like this in the village. Well, we better keep our eyes peeled." _She could feel him shaking it off. "I just wanted to ask where we are. I didn't mean to say that other stuff. It's just like when Gabriel put us on different shows. I just felt the urge to say it, even back there with that girl."

She shrugged one shoulder (the one Sam wasn't standing on). "Just do what we did then: Play our roles," she replied, walking up to the bridge.

"I don't get why _I'm _here, though," Dean stated, following closely. "I mean, I haven't felt that urge just yet."

"We gotta have someone normal here. It's kinda funny that you're a wandering artist though, Sammy."

"Shut up," he grumbled, earning chuckles from both Aline and Dean. "Easy there, Ally! I'm barely holding onto your clothes."

"That's cause you're not used to being this small."

"What's going on anyway?"

The question made her freeze in her tracks. _Time to tell the truth, _she thought, turning around to face Dean. "You guys might wanna sit down for this. It's gonna be a pretty long story."

Dean sat down on the grass, and Sam hopped down from her shoulder, landing on Dean's outstretched hand and sitting down on his palm. Aline sat down as well, taking a deep breath.

"You know that game I like? Ōkami?" Once they both nodded, she continued, "Well, she's real. That game's story is real, too."

"Wait, so you're saying everything in that game actually happened?" Sam asked.

Aline nodded. "Orochi, Ninetails, the festival, everything. The half-human children of Amaterasu—"

"Hold up," Dean interrupted. "Did you just say 'half-human children of Amaterasu'?"

"Yeah. She's only had four, counting Chibi."

"Including you."

She nodded. "Like I was saying, we inherit all her powers when the world is in trouble."

"Like if the apocalypse is starting."

"Either that or something bad is happening to our version of Issun."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sam questioned.

"We go through Amaterasu's memories. From waking up to going back to the Celestial Plain to rebuild it. Everything. All the while getting the brush techniques. Chibi's the only one who didn't have to go through that. Then again, he's her only full-blooded god son."

"What does this have to do with me being this size?"

She sighed and ran her fingers over her hair. "Different people we know are chosen to represent each person in my mom's memory. You're my version of Issun, Sam. We won't know who you are supposed to be until God knows when, Dean. What I do know is all three of us are stuck together no matter what happens."

Dean grinned. "I wouldn't have it any other way," he replied.

The three of them stood up, Sam jumping back on Aline's shoulder.

In a moment of insecurity while crossing the bridge, she asked, "You guys believe me, right?"

"Course we do!" Sam reassured. "I mean, we're seeing all this, too."

"Quick question, though. Are we still in the bunker?" Dean inquired.

"Yeah. My room's apparently Konohana, the River of Heavens, and the Cave of Nagi."

"Konohana?"

"That's the name of the tree we walked into. The woman was Sakuya. She's a wood sprite."

That was when they walked up to a row of pots.

"That urge's coming again," Sam pointed out.

"Spit it out then," Dean stated.

"_Look at all those pots just waitin' to be broken! If you bust 'em, there's sure to be something good inside."_

Aline ran over to the pots and bashed each one with a kick, getting twenty yen from them. Dean followed as she ran over to a wall.

"Don't even bother, Sammy. I know what I gotta do," Aline said, wall-jumping up to the top of the hill. She held out her hand. "Jump, Dean. I'll pull you up."

"I don't wanna hurt you, Ally," he stated.

"Just do it! You won't hurt me."

After shrugging once, he jumped and grabbed her hand, and she pulled him up without breaking a sweat, earning a grin and a high-five from Dean.

"That was pretty awesome."

She walked over to the chest and opened it with a wide grin after breaking the pots (getting eighty yen from each) as he followed. "Perks of being a demigod."

A small holy bone was inside the chest, making her grin widen. They both ran over to another bridge, except this one was broken.

"_Looks like the bridge is out," _Sam said.

"No shit, Sherlock," Dean replied, getting a bitchface from Sam.

"_This shouldn't be so hard, um... Amaterasu, was it? That's kinda long. Mind if I call ya 'Ammy'?"_

"I don't really have much of a choice, do I?" Aline teased.

"_Listen, Ammy... Ever heard of the spirits of the brush? Good brushwork has its own soul, 'least that's what they say. Just watch. It'd take all day to explain... A picture's worth a thousand words, right?"_

That was when the colors changed to a sepia tone, and a brush with a black ink tip appeared, drawing a zigzag from one end of the broken bridge to the other. Then, all the colors came back, and the bridge was fixed.

"_Nice huh? Just a little technique I've mastered called Rejuvenation. It's one of many brush techniques that use divine power. It's a brush god power that can restore broken or missing things. I've practiced really hard just to master this one technique. But there are 13! Each one is a power of one of the 13 brush gods. Originally, all 13 were a single powerful deity. When the deity died, its power was split into 13 separate gods. The gods now dwell within objects all around us, but... God or no god, how could anyone have the power to master all 13!"_

Aline decided not to say anything as both she and Dean ran over the bridge and stopped in front of a sign with words written on it in kanji.

"What's it say?" Dean asked.

"'River of the Heavens,'" Aline replied without skipping a beat.

"_River of the Heavens? They mean the fabled stardust river?" _Sam said in disbelief. _"But I sure don't see anything like that around here. It couldn't be that little puddle over there, could it?"_

Aline glanced over at the small puddle of stars hanging over the cloudy sky. Choosing to not say another word, she ran up the hill.

"Wait for me! Human, remember?" Dean reminded her, following close behind.

Once he caught up to her at the top, Sam said as they all looked up at the sky, _"Wow! Look at the stars twinkle! I haven't seen such a beautiful nighttime sky in ages."_

Just then, four stars started shining brighter than the others, forming a pattern.

"_Hey, look! Are those stars forming a pattern, or is it just me?"_

The four stars connected together with a line, and a picture of a dragon flashed in front of it like in a constellation book Aline had when she was younger. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Dean's eyes light up in amazement.

"I've never seen a constellation like that," he stated before squinting a bit. "There's a star missing."

She smiled. "You wanna have a go, Sammy?"

"Sure," Sam replied, drawing a dot.

It didn't work, and Aline stopped Dean from laughing at that.

"My turn." Her tail flicked up into the sky and placed a dot right at the end of the first line, successfully completing the constellation. The picture of the dragon appeared once again. This time, a real dragon (a Chinese looking one) flew out and stopped in front of Aline, Dean, and Sam as the scenery changed to the Celestial Plain. He was white and had the same markings she had on his body. Green, purple, red, and yellow balls were in each of his hands. It looked like he was coming out of the scroll.

Aline could feel the shock coming from both brothers as they stared at the dragon. Even though they had seen and hunted dragons, this one was completely different.

"_Ah... Why if it isn't mother Amaterasu," _the dragon began. _"I apologize for not contacting you during these long years. Having never forgotten you, I, Yomigami, god of restoration, have eagerly awaited this day when we could again meet. While you were away, the 13 spirits of the brush that you once possessed, including myself, have been scattered across this land of men, and now lie in disarray. I became a constellation and managed to survive until now. The time has come for you to seek out and reunite all the techniques. Your power is what is needed to restore the dried riverbed of the heavens and renew the flow of stardust."_

Yomigami turned into a bright ball and flew right into her body, causing bright tendrils of light to appear around her.

The night sky and the hill returned, and Aline wasted no time in running back down to the River of Heavens, successfully jumping over the arch. Dean followed her, without jumping over the arch.

"Someone wants to be unnecessarily epic today," he teased, earning a wolfish grin from Aline.

"Damn right I do," she replied. They both ran over to the puddle of stardust, and Aline used Rejuvenation on it, transforming it into the River of Heavens. The two of them (with Sam holding onto the strap of her dress) swam across to a treasure chest that contained an Astral Pouch. "I got another stomach!"

The statement made the two brothers laugh as she broke the vases before the three walked into the portal underneath the arch without letting Sam explain exactly what it was.

"What? That's what it is!"

Neither of the boys gave a response to that the moment the bright light disappeared and was replaced by a beautiful scenery. The path continued up a small hill, leading up to a bridge.

After effortlessly picking up Dean and hoisting him onto her back (so he could keep up), she ran under the arch and up the hill before crossing the bridge, feeling Sam tightly holding onto her clothes. The waterfall caught her attention out of the corner of her eye before she continued on through the forest.

"How many times do I have to tell ya to slow down!" Sam implored.

She grinned wolfishly, not saying a word. The scenery was what really made her speechless, combined with the fact that Dean was on her back. She tried not to focus on the fact that it felt like she'd done this before.

"Apparently, a million and one, Sammy," Dean said. Aline could hear the grin in his voice.

"Haha. Very funny."

There was another arch before a set of stone steps leading up to their destination. She ran up the steps, passing under another arch before entering the Cave of Nagi. The wooden gate shut behind the three of them, trapping them in the cave.

"Where are we?" Dean inquired as he climbed down off Aline's back.

"Wait for it," she replied.

"_Is this... Is this the legendary shrine?" _Sam questioned, bouncing around on Aline's head._ "We must be in the Cave of Nagi! The legendary hero Nagi is enshrined here! He vanquished evil 100 years ago with the help of the white wolf, Shiranui. First the River of the Heavens and now this place... Where the heck are we, furball? Boy, this place is a wreck."_

Aline looked around before her eyes settled on the stone statue of Nagi. Moss had grown on different places here and there on it, and his sword appeared to be broken a few inches above the crescent moon shaped hilt.

"_See? That sword's in really bad shape. The gods sure didn't do much to protect this place."_

"You're tellin' me," Aline replied, walking towards the edge of the platform the three of them were standing on. For the first time since before the trials began, Nagi's and Shiranui's story came to the front of her mind. "My mom always told me his story at bedtime. Every night before she died. It was either that or some fairy tale." She smiled wistfully. "She even recorded herself reading the story just in case something happened."

"Do you still have that recording?" Sam asked.

Aline nodded. "It's on my iPod now. Charlie made it into a CD, but I still keep the tape in my room." She wiped away the tear she didn't even realize had fallen. Her tail flicked as she drew in the rest of Tsukuyomi's blade, effectively ending the sad conversation.

"_That really WAS your brushwork all this time! How'd you get so good? Exactly who are you anyway?"_

She could hear the shock in Sam's voice while she looked over at Dean. He was looking between her and the now-fixed sword, a look of amazement on his face.

"How'd you—" he began to ask, but she cut him off with, "The power of Rejuvenation."

He grinned at her. "Awesome."

Sam's voice took her attention away from replying. _"Hey, there's another constellation! This one looks like a..."_

A group of five stars shined brighter than the others, four lines connecting them just like Yomigami's constellation. This time, the image of a rat flashed in front of the incomplete constellation. For the second time, Aline flicked her tail up into the sky and placed a dot at the end of the first line, successfully completing the constellation. A bright light obscured her vision for a few seconds before a real life rat appeared. This one had the same coloring as Yomigami, and he had a scabbard at his side. He landed on the floor as the scene around the four of them changed to the Celestial Plain once again. He turned his head, bit the handle of his sword, and pulled it out.

The sword was five times bigger than him.

She could feel shock coming off the brothers in waves as the rat sliced the air effortlessly a few times before resting it on the pointy end on the ground. He laid down on the hilt of the sword. Aline, on the other hand, sat down (the phrase "criss-cross applesauce" coming to her mind from her kindergarten days). Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Dean sitting down as well, while Sam sat on her shoulder.

"_Well, well, well... If it isn't mother Amaterasu," _the rat began. _"It's been a long time. But with all these monsters around, the only place I could hide was in this shrine dedicated to ancient heroes."_

"Ancient her_o," _Aline corrected. "Nagi's the only one here, Tachigami."

"_If there is anything I can do to assist you in your endeavors, I'm at your service. Make good use of this sword, as it was designed to conquer evil."_

Tachigami, like Yomigami before him, turned into a bright ball and flew right into her body, causing bright tendrils of light to appear around her.

The Cave of Nagi appeared again, replacing the Celestial Plain. Dean and she stood up again as Sam spoke, catching her attention. She looked over at him.

"_Hey, that was the god, Tachigami, master of the Power Slash technique. Wait a minute. If you're getting all these powers..." _he stated, and Aline saw the look of realization on his face. _"Then you're just like Shiranui! You know, the wolf who fought and died alongside the great Nagi. When Shiranui died, the wolf's power was split into the 13 brush gods. This is crazy. Shiranui and Nagi? It's just like the legend."_

"Legends are always 90% true when it comes to us. You know that, Sammy," she teased, earning a glare from the younger Winchester and a laugh from Dean.

"_Well, anyway, I've never seen this Power Slash technique myself. How 'bout showing your stuff off on that boulder over there?" _He pointed over at the boulder that was next to the gate blocking their way out of the cave. _"Lemme see you slice it in half by drawing a single line! I won't believe it till I see it!"_

Aline rolled her eyes and bit her tongue to keep the retort she had in mind from coming out as she quickly flicked her tail again, to the right this time, drawing a straight line through the middle of the boulder. The top half of the boulder slid off the bottom half, falling to the ground on the left side of it.

"_Wow! I didn't think ya had it in ya, furball! I'm not even in the same league as you! Guess I really overestimated myself," _Sam replied in amazement. He was quiet for a few seconds. _"Hey, furball... Er... I mean, Amaterasu... I've made up my mind! If you're Shiranui reborn, then that means you can master all 13 techniques, right?"_

Aline suddenly started to feel a little wary for some strange reason. She knew she shouldn't, especially since she knew Sam and loved him like the brother she never had, but maybe Amaterasu's feelings for Issun at this point were rubbing off on her. Still, Aline knew what was going to happen between them at the end of her adventure. "Right," she replied nervously.

"_In that case, I think I'll tag along until I'm as good as you! Lucky you!" _He then buried himself in her hair.

Aline tried to shake him out with a whimper, but to no avail. She heard his muffled laughter, and she clenched her jaw in annoyance.

"_Heh heh... It's no use tryin' to change my mind." _He popped out of her hair. _"There's no stoppin' me once I've made a decision! But enough about me! Now that you've mastered Power Slash, you can cut down that thing Sakuya was talkin' about. Let's go and give it a shot!"_

She cut the wooden gate open and glared at the moose sprite on her shoulder who had resumed laughing at her attempt to shake him off.

"I swear I'll put you in my mouth again, Sammy," she growled before storming out of the cave, followed closely by Dean, who was struggling to keep a straight face.

"I don't wanna hear about how much you wanna suck my brother's dick, sweetheart," Dean teased, making her blush.

Instead of responding to that, she ran down the steps. Right at the bottom, a fight began with two imps. She quickly transformed into her wolf form and got in a fighting stance.

"_What the!? Where did they come from?" _Sam questioned. _"Ah, whatever. Draw first, ask questions later, right?"_

Dean pulled out his knife, but Aline Power Slashed both of them before bashing them with her reflector, Power Slashing them again to get two Demon Fangs.

She grinned, feeling in a definitely better mood than before as she barked, **"That fight was a piece of Demon Fang!"**

Both boys laughed as she picked up Dean and put him on her back before running across the bridge and down that hill again. There was one more fight at the entrance to the River of Heavens (two more imps), but it ended the same as the previous one. Ten minutes later, Aline was back in her human form, Sam was sitting on her shoulder, and Dean was standing next to her in front of Konohana. She looked up at the fruit, flicked her tail to make a Power Slash line, and the fruit dropped to the ground.


	5. Is That?

The whole of Kamiki Village blossomed back to the way it was, but something didn't seem right to her. What that was, she wasn't exactly sure.

"_Wow! The village's been restored! Sakuya came through big time!"_ Sam pointed out. _"She really was protecting the village! But I sure wish I coulda spent more time in her kimono, if ya know what I mean! Heh heh heh heh heh!"_

Aline rolled her eyes while Dean laughed. Sam never talked like that except when he was really drunk. Of course, it was amusing to watch, but she wasn't really amused by it at that point. Whatever wasn't right was really bothering her to no end.

"_But seriously, with monsters runnin' around and all...the village could still be in danger. Let's go see how they're all doing down there."_

Before she even took off, she grabbed onto the back of Dean's shirt with her teeth and threw him onto her back.

"Woah! What the hell'd you do that for?" he asked.

"**You're not god, remember? And I know where we need to go next. Besides, we can check this place out later," **she barked. **"It's not like we're never gonna come back here. Just at certain points we won't be able to."**

"Like when?"

"**Certain locations you can't leave. Like boss dungeons. I'm talking about ****_major _****boss dungeons later on. But we'll worry about those when we get to 'em. For now, hold on tight."**

She felt him lean down and wrap his arms around her neck before she took off running through the archway and down the hill. Sam grabbed her ear in an iron grip.

"Slow down!" he yelled, making her laugh.

"**Not a chance, Sammy."**

She then felt the vibrations from Dean which let her know he was also laughing at his brother's pleas. Not for the first time, she was glad to be in her wolf form otherwise she would've been blushing madly, but her heart was pounding in her chest, not just from running. She ran to a set of two umbrellas. There was a statue of a man wearing a dark gray robe with a light gray sash, a light gray _kesa_, and a holy charm hanging from the sash. A shakuhachi flute was raised to his mouth. His entire head was covered by a straw basket. He was clothed in the typical garb of a Buddhist monk. The only unusual thing about him was the fact that he wasn't moving, not even breathing.

On either side of the umbrellas, there were two separate archways. Through these archways were two pathways. The one to the left lead up a hill with a good view of Konohana while the one on the right lead down to the main part of Kamiki.

Once they were close enough, Sam said in confusion, _"What in the world? I don't remember there being a statue here..." _He let go of her ear and stared curiously at the statue of the monk. _"Well, whatever. Let's go talk to the villagers!"_

Aline took off running down to Kamiki, Sam once again grabbing onto her ear for dear life. On the right side of the path was a line of dead trees. At the bottom of the hill was another archway.

"What the hell is that?" Dean asked as she ran through the arch. She stopped and looked back at him. He was pointing at a house with a huge orange on the roof. There were mini-oranges on the top of two of the fences.

"**Mr. & Mrs. Orange's house," **she replied before running off to the garden right across the way. Standing inches away from the end of the garden (but close to the middle) was a somewhat chubby woman wearing a dark gray robe and a small apron around her waist. She was even barefoot, and a brown pot rested on the top of her head.

Once she stopped an inch away from the woman, Sam said, _"Hey, there's a statue here, too... It's like the villagers have turned to stone or something..."_

Just then, all three of them heard Orochi roar once again, making Aline clench her jaw at the reminder of what was coming soon. She felt Dean's eyes on her as Sam spoke again.

"_Not again!? That's not one of those smaller monsters that're lurking about. A roar like that's gotta belong to somethin' much bigger."_

"**No shit," **Aline murmured under her breath.

"_Let's hurry up and find somebody with a pulse around here!"_

"What was that?" Dean questioned.

"**Orochi."**

Aline took off running toward another statue. This one was of a small boy wearing a one piece outfit fastened by a string at the waist and carrying a dragonfly at the end of a string. Sam's next statement ended the conversation before Dean could even ask who exactly Orochi was.

"_No good. This one's not movin'." _Sam let go of her ear once again and began bouncing on her head as she glanced around, feeling a bit bored since she knew exactly what she had to do. _"Everyone here was perfectly fine just a few hours ago! There's definitely something strange goin' on around here. The village is back, but what's up with this dark sky? Maybe it's dark outside the village, too!? Let's find some high ground so we can take a look!"_

Sam quickly grabbed onto her ear as she turned around and ran back up the hill through the archway, going straight to the area with the view of Konohana instead of right up to the tree itself.

"**Don't say a word yet, Sammy," **she stated.

There was an archway, and, through the archway was a bridge that lead to a balcony that offered a beautiful view of Konohana.

She ran through the dried out pond at the top of the hill and ran through the archway, stopping right in the middle of the balcony. The three of them looked up at the dark sky.

"_This is bad... The sun's not even shining. It's as black as night as far as the eye can see. And not a single villager can move a muscle... Is it some kind of curse? Did a monster do this? It's not gonna stay like this forever, is it?"_

Aline didn't say a single word in response, instead staring at the never-ending blackness that was the sky. She chose to shake her head left then right before settling back in the middle.

"_If only the sun were out to light our way... If you could draw a circle in the sky, we'd have ourselves a sun! But I guess that'd be impossible, even for a god like you. Maybe we better seek out another brush god for help. Of course, if you had that kind of power from the start, that'd be a different story..."_

She bit back the "what's that supposed to mean?" comment and drew a circle in the sky with her tail. The circle changed to the sun, now lighting up the sky. The beauty of Kamiki Village returned once more.

"_Wh-Wh-What the!?" _Aline could hear the shock and surprise in Sam's voice as he bounced on her snout. _"Come to think of it, your name IS Amaterasu! That's the name of the sun god! So, it'd follow that you had the Sunrise technique from the start. With it, you could even turn night into day... Wow! You're no run-of-the-mill god, that's for sure!"_

"**Thanks for that, moose," **she teased, making Dean laugh again.

"_'The flowing brush is like music from the heavens.' That's a line from one of my grandfather's poems. He felt a skilled artist was like a musician of shape and color. Since you're such a great artist yourself, why don't we name your brushwork after that poem of his? It's called Celestial Brush! After all, your brush did bring out the sun! Well, Ammy... Let's get back to the village! We gotta see if the villagers are back to normal now."_

She heard footsteps coming up behind them.

"_Hm? Who are you!?" _a familiar male voice asked.

"Hang on a sec," Dean started, looking down at her. "Is that...?"

"It sounds like him," Sam pointed out.

Aline and Dean turned around, and Aline saw a bald old man with a long white beard bouncing an orange that eventually rested on top of his head. He was wearing a blue robe, a rope tied around his neck (it resembled a shimenawa with two shide on the sides of the central knot), and carried a wooden staff to support his frail old self.

"**It even looks like him," **Aline threw in. **"Mixed with Mr. Orange."**

The three of them finally looked him in the eye, and, sure enough, saw brown eyes. Their jaws dropped in shock.

It was Rufus.

"_A white wolf!? Not the one who fought that terrible creature with Nagi?!" _Rufus, or rather Mr. Orange, said. _"You couldn't possibly be the legendary Shiranui!" _He shook his head while Aline sat down. _"No, it can't be... That story is 100 years old."_

She yawned and tilted her head to the side before looking right at him.

"_Still, you look a lot like that statue of Shiranui! On the other hand, you don't look quite as smart..."_

That caught her attention, and she got down in a fighting stance and growled at him.

Dean was the second to get himself out of his shock (right after her), and he pet her, trying to calm her down. "Easy, sweetheart," he whispered in her ear.

"_Wh-Wh-Whoa! No need to growl like that," _Rufus stated, punching the air to try to defend himself from the angry wolf. _"Can you really understand what I'm saying? Well, I'm not one to mince words. I just state the facts."_

That wasn't why she was growling. She smelled the sinister air the moment it came before he said those words. Her eyes locked on the three green imps standing on the hill behind Rufus. They jumped down.

"_Hm? What's this sudden chill down my spine?" _He rubbed his head.

"_Here they come, furball...," _Sam stated as Aline growled at the imps, ready to fight. _"Those are the monsters that've been plaguing these lands. They sneak into villages and cause all sorts of trouble! Step aside, furball! This is a job for my trusty sword, Denkomaru!"_

Aline took Dean off her back and jumped over to Rufus, grabbing his robe with her teeth as the three imps attempted to attack him. She used him to whack them away before letting his orange reattach itself to his head and throwing him to safety off the balcony.

The fight began, but it was the same as the last two fights: Power Slash and a whack with her reflector before two more Power Slashes to get three demon fangs.

The water came back in a burst of flowers, along with a treasure chest.

"Why didn't Rufus recognize us?" Dean wondered.

"**It's not actually Rufus," **she replied. **"Sure, he looked and sounded like Rufus, but it wasn't actually him. Some of these people might look like people we've known, like Bobby or Jo or Ellen, but they're not actually them."**

She felt him shrug. "You're the expert with this, so I'll take your word for it."

She didn't say anything else as she ran back down the hill, stopping to talk to the mostly-unconscious Rufus.

"_Ah... Great Shiranui... Oh no...," _he muttered.

Just for kicks, she tackled him.

"_Whoa!"_

"_Hey!" _Sam reprimanded. _"Don't! Show some respect to your elders!"_

Both she and Dean laughed as she ran past the monk (who was currently playing one note on his shakuhachi flute) and down to the main hub of Kamiki. She could see that his robe was brown and his sash was light blue.

"Quick question."

"**Shoot," **Aline replied.

"Why'd Ruf-I mean, Mr. Orange see you as a normal white wolf? Couldn't he see your markings or your weapon?"

"**At this point in time, the gods have grown so weak that people can't see them anymore. My job, and the job of my Celestial Envoy, is to make people believe in them and me again."**

"I get that," Dean stated. "But what's a Celestial Envoy?"

"**It's a bit complicated," **she lied. **"I'll explain later. If not, we'll probably find a scroll or something that explains it."**

Dean nodded while she ran past the radish garden to an old woman washing clothes by the stream, crying. Like Mr. Orange, she had an orange on top of her head. She was wearing a simple purple robe with a light yellow sash around it, a huge basket on her back, and a headband around her short white hair.

The moment she turned to face the three hunters, their jaws dropped for the second time that day.

It was Ellen, except she was much older than she was when she died.

"_A white wolf!" _she exclaimed in shock. _"Now that's a rare sight. Did you come down from the mountains just to play with us? Well, you'd better be careful. Lately, some monsters have been attacking the villagers."_

"_Do you even know who you're talking to, gramma?" _Sam questioned, recovering from his shock. _"This here is Shiranui reborn! The wolf and I have it covered. Those monsters are history!"_

"_Well, if it isn't Issun! And riding a wolf, are we? This one certainly resembles Shiranui, especially the nose."_

Aline was sure she'd be blushing at the statement if she was in her human form. Dean, on the other hand, burst out laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of it. Luckily, Ellen didn't hear that and continued speaking.

"_Hmm... Well, I'd better get back to my work." _She then mumbled something under her breath that Aline didn't catch before going back to washing her clothes.

Aline barked at her, catching Ellen's attention again.

"_Here to listen to the ramblings of an old woman, are you? Well, I was doing the laundry, but when it was ready to dry, I noticed my drying pole was gone." _She hung her head. _"Oh, whatever shall I do?"_

Aline ran over to the two Y-shaped poles and, using Rejuvenation, drew her a new one.

Ellen turned around, her jaw dropping in shock. _"A new drying pole!? Oh my! Where did that come from!? The gods must have answered my prayers. How wonderful! Time to dry the laundry."_

It took her a few minutes to hang up her laundry on the new pole, but, once she was finished, she still looked a bit unhappy.

"**Why the long face?" **Aline barked. **"I gave you a new drying pole. What else do you want?"**

"_Well, I'm glad I was able to hang my laundry, but..."_

Aline sighed. **"But what?"**

"_The sun seems to be so far away these days. Maybe it doesn't like all those monsters that are lurking about? If only it would shine closer, my laundry would dry in a second."_

Aline moved to stand a bit closer to the pole and drew the sun closer so it shined above the bamboo training dummy over across the stream.

"_My word! The sun has suddenly drawn so close... My laundry will be bone dry in no time. First my pole, and now this? Will the miracles never cease? Maybe I ought to make some Cherry Cakes to offer to the sun. Come back tonight if you want some too, Snowball. No one makes better Cherry Cakes. They're mouth-watering good!"_

Aline smiled at her before running across the bridge, stopping directly across from a broken waterwheel.

"Let me guess," Dean began, "not Ellen?"

"**Pretty much," **Aline replied. **"Most of the time, if they look like a dead person, you call them by their name in this story. In Ellen's case, it would be Mrs. Orange, while Rufus would be Mr. Orange, like I said." **She repaired the broken waterwheel with Rejuvenation.

Once the missing piece came back in, the three of them saw a black-haired woman walk over to it.

"_What's this!?" _she exclaimed. _"The mill's been mended! Who on earth did that? I'd given up on the idea of making my sake. But now I can get on with polishing the rice. Well! No time like the present! I better get started." _She then walked into the mill.

Aline ran across the bridge, jumped over the fence into the rice paddy, and followed her inside the mill. The woman was standing close to the door leading to the waterwheel. She was wearing a yellow and red kimono patterned with rice grains on the sleeves as well as a red hakama. The long sleeves of her kimono were tied at the bottoms. On the top of her head, she was wearing three bales of rice to mark her status as a sake maker. The shape of her hair was the strangest part about her: It was shaped like a comb.

"_Well, what a fine looking wolf!" _she greeted. _"What's your name?_ _Mine's Kushi. It's a pleasure to meet you."_

"_Working in the fields again, are ya?" _Sam asked.

Kushi jumped a few inches into the air, looking down at Sam. _"Issun! Are you and the wolf together? Well, this thing here's for polishing the rice, you see. Oh, I tell you what. I've got something I think you'll like. Hee hee. It's just some leftover stock from the store, but I made it myself! It's called Vista of the Gods! Oh, but are you even old enough to drink, Snowy?"_

"**I don't drink, Kushi," **Aline stated as the sake brewer placed the blue jug on the floor in front of her. She bit it and ran out of the mill toward the giant rock blocking the exit of Kamiki.

"I do not drink vine," Sam joked, accent and all, making all three of them laugh as they neared the merchant pushing the giant rock.

"_Heave! Heave!" _he cried. _"This is weird! My mind really wants to shift this rock, but my body won't cooperate. It's like I'm made of lead! Could this be a case of demonic possession? I sure hope not!"_

That was when purple smoke exited his mouth.

Aline got into a fighting stance, growling at the smoke as it formed into a solid entity.


End file.
